


Love Languages

by GeeLiz_98



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Artist Park Chanyeol, Autism, Chanyeol is autistic, Cute, Disabled Character, Established Relationship, Fashion Designer Byun Baekhyun, Fluff, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, Neurodiversity, Physical Disability, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-17 15:07:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29968230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeeLiz_98/pseuds/GeeLiz_98
Summary: Chanyeol and Baekhyun are in love. Their lives are very different - Baekhyun is a millionaire fashion designer with a high profile, Chanyeol is an independent artist with a very quiet life - but they understand each other more than anyone else could dream, too. Even in difference, love prevails and Chanyeol and Baekhyun are well-versed in each other's love languages.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun & Park Chanyeol, Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Before starting I'd like to say a couple of things: 
> 
> 1) This is a continuation of my previous fic 'What is Love?' I'd prefer it if you read it first but it's not necessary. I've done my best to make sure this can be read in isolation.  
> 2) The ways in which autism are discussed/ presented in this fic - however subtle or unnoticeable at times - are based on my own experiences entirely. This isn't an educational tool or an attempt at perfect representation so take it with a pinch of salt. Discussions of physical disability are based on those I have had with people I know and the same applies. I have tried my best but these characters may be fallible, as am I.  
> 3) I'm really nervous about this for some reason so updates might be slow hehe.

_ Fashion mogul Byun Baekhyun shocks and stuns in a new editorial shoot. Pushing the boundaries of what it means to be en vogue. Byun has an eye coveted by fashion designers the world over but no one will ever come close to his attunement to colour, conceptualisation and class. We met up with the infamous designer to discuss his latest line entitled: Outlawed. _

Chanyeol was glued to the screen, totally dissociated from his surroundings and fixed to the ground in the middle of the massive department store. Knowing he wouldn’t have been able to catch Baekhyun’s TV appearance that afternoon, he had been slouching around the place like someone had installed a thunderstorm directly above his head. Never one to miss out on a launch, however, he had stealthily escaped the changing room waiting area mere seconds before the start time to catch a glimpse of his face.

“Earth to Chanyeol!” The aggravated voice of his friend sounded from the other end of the electronics aisle before pointed footsteps approached him. “Care to explain why I’ve been abandoned on a friend date?”

Chanyeol forced his eyes away from the big screen just as Baekhyun entered into the frame and faced his friend with an apologetic wince. That was kind of dickish of him but, in his defence, Jongin had been taking forever and Chanyeol couldn’t bear standing around in one place for more than five seconds. He felt as though his body was physically itching and he had lost interest in scrolling his phone. All he needed was a few minutes to see his boyfriend’s face on the television. Jongin didn’t have to know.

“Sorry...I was planning on coming back but I got more distracted than I thought I would,” he gritted his teeth from the embarrassment. He was often prone to falling into a daze, “you should have texted me. I’d have come back.”

Jongin sighed and stared at Chanyeol in resignation, already used to his antics after living with him for so long, before changing the subject. Jongin was also good at letting things go.

“Whatever. I’ve found you now,” he followed the magnetic shifting of Chanyeol’s eyes towards the TV screen where Baekhyun was talking animatedly about one of the items featured in the photoshoot and raised a questioning brow. “Who’s that? Never seen him before.”

“Byun Baekhyun,” Chanyeol replied simply, omitting a great deal of information because omission is not the same as lying and all lies have too much detail. “He’s a fashion designer...apparently. It...says on the bottom of the screen.” He pointed to the rolling text with a jittery finger which earned him a scoff from his roommate. 

“Wow, no need to be a smart arse!” Jongin had a habit of taking everything a little too personally on account of his hot-headed nature. “Why you watching this crap? All fashion designers do is throw together crap no one could actually wear and trick people into giving them loads of money. Waste of time.”

Somebody was clearly not a friend of the fashion world. Chanyeol, albeit clueless, was a boyfriend of the fashion world and he found Jongin’s words to be unreasonable and callous. The identity of Chanyeol’s mystery boyfriend was, however, a very well-kept secret so he had no choice but to bite his tongue and force a smile. Something that was incredibly hard to do when the snappy response was already waiting at his clenched teeth. 

“I guess it’s not for everyone,” he tried to reply in a levelled tone but he never was good at hiding his inner feelings. 

This would have been more of a problem if Jongin had been paying attention but he had already moved on from the apparent tedium of fashion and onto the bag in his hand. With a flourish he pulled something out of the bag and shook it about until it unfolded, cascading in the air like some kind of elderly woman’s drapery.

“Tada!” 

He held the dress up, a blue colour and dotted with crowdings of flowers in various colours. The collar was ruffled and the whole thing had no shape at all. Chanyeol wasn’t sure what to do other than to blink.

“What d’ya think? Nice, huh?”

The words were tumbling out of Chanyeol before he could stop them. “No. Not really.”

Jongin’s arms flopped, taking the dress with them and dragging the hem on the floor of the shop. He wasn’t upset, nor was he angry. Mostly just tired-looking. 

“I can always trust you to be honest with me,” he huffed but he made sure to offer a small smile so that Chanyeol knew he wasn’t mad. If anything, Chanyeol’s blunt honesty was part of his charm. “Go on then. Tell me what’s wrong with it, Mr Fashion.” 

Chanyeol was certain that Jongin was making fun of him but he wasn’t bothered. Jongin had a habit of teasing him but that was the way he demonstrated his love, albeit in an unorthodox way. That’s what Junmyeon had said the third time that Jongin had greeted Chanyeol by calling him an idiot. 

“Well, why did you get a dress, first of all? You never wear dresses.”

Jongin’s face fell in shock before he snapped back. “Hey! Are you saying I can’t wear a dress!? I can wear dresses.”

“Sure you can,” Chanyeol agreed. Jongin could do whatever he wanted and if his track record and general life history were anything to go by, he absolutely did what he wanted. “You just don’t. Besides, I was more commenting on the pattern. It’s sort of...hideous.”

This made Jongin laugh. He took two steps closer to Chanyeol and placed an affectionate kiss on his cheek.

“I love you so much, you know that?” He expressed out of nowhere but Chanyeol would take it all the same. It was about time Jongin said something nice to him. “I know it’s hideous but you’re not supposed to say that,” he said through chuckles, “I bought it to cut up, anyway. I want to make a crop top. Would have thought you’d have gathered that since you’re so knowledgeable in fashion these days.”

Chanyeol should have known. He had seen more of his roommate’s midriff than he would ever require in this lifetime or the next. Ever since Jongin had started developing the most ridiculous muscles, he had not wasted a single day by keeping them covered, much to Chanyeol’s chagrin. 

“You don’t always have to show off your abs, you know…” Chanyeol offered, already knowing he was wasting his time. 

“Erm! I went through a lot to get these abs, thank you very much! I will show them off as much as I like!”

Jongin was a little bit exhausting when he was impassioned so Chanyeol tried to discourage any further shouting by shrugging in dismissal and pointing towards the door.

“Coffee?” 

He didn’t wait for a response and simply linked arms with Jongin to lead him to the coffee shop in the centre of the shopping centre. It wasn’t really ideal given that it opened out into the shopping centre and was pretty cramped and noisy but Chanyeol desperately wanted to sit down. 

Jongin turned to Chanyeol while they walked and looked at him closely, inspecting his face and his stature. Chanyeol shrunk somewhat under his calculating gaze but tried to ignore it by admiring a new art installation outside some expensive clothes shop.

“Chanyeol?” Jongin posed carefully, shaking Chanyeol’s arm gently to grab his attention. “Are you alright?”

Surprised by the sudden question, Chanyeol looked to his friend with confusion, nodding in response. “Yeah, of course. Why’d you ask?”

From what he could think, Chanyeol hadn’t been acting out of sorts lately. Admittedly, he had been staying at home a lot more because Baekhyun’s schedule had been hectic thanks to the launch. But he couldn’t tell Jongin that because Jongin didn’t know about Baekhyun; Chanyeol’s relationship was his own little secret. 

There were moments that he wished his love for Baekhyun could be more apparent. After all, he loved the other man and longed to show him off to the world and to prove to his friends how brilliant and wonderful he was. The time had not come for that to happen, unfortunately. The public nature and the pressures of Baekhyun’s jobs brought about so much anxiety in him that he would rather keep Chanyeol out of the spotlight. Chanyeol didn’t mind that so much, either. He was simply conflicted as to whether this was the best route to Baekhyun’s ultimate happiness. 

His boyfriend’s absence had not been too difficult because they had adapted to distance early on. Over time, the two of them had found their own small ways to remind the other that he was on their mind. Baekhyun would have flowers delivered to Chanyeol’s small workshop where he saw out his work as an illustrator. Chanyeol would slip artwork into Baekhyun’s postbox, usually cute comic strips depicting Chanyeol and Baekhyun spending time together in the most magnificent circumstances. Baekhyun loved superheroes and Chanyeol was able to make them both superheroes through his art. 

Clearly not convinced, Jongin squinted his eyes, challenging Chanyeol to lie to him again. Despite Chanyeol’s efforts towards secrecy, his housemates had suspected for a long time that he was seeing someone even if they didn’t know the details but unfortunately for Chanyeol, ignorance had a tendency to foster cynicism and his housemates were concerned that there was something untoward going on. He appreciated their concern but equally, their constant interrogation was suffocating. 

They had already arrived at the coffee shop which obviously encouraged Jongin to let the conversation go, instead asking about Chanyeol’s work. 

Excited to be given the opportunity, Chanyeol spoke at a rate of one hundred words a minute, relaying every single commision he had completed that week, even down to the visual intricacies of the people, animals and places he had sketched from his special place. Even while Jongin placed their orders, already knowing what Chanyeol wanted because he never asked for anything else, Chanyeol whispered enthusiastically about a particularly cool commission he had started work on. 

“The woman on the phone said that she wanted a cartoon strip about anthropomorphised flowers,” he spoke while he walked, only pausing to grab a handful of sugar packets, “which I thought was a bit weird but when I started working on it, I realised how interesting it would be to draw different flowers and imagine the different personalities they would have. Maybe roses would be a bit hoity-toity because they’re so pretty and tulips would be shy and that’s why they’re all closed up -ow!”

He wasn’t paying attention and bumped into an empty table, sending a pile of napkins on the floor as he did so. 

Jongin tried to subtly hide his laughter but it was difficult once Chanyeol bumped his head on the way back up from collecting the napkins from the ground. Chanyeol pouted at his laughing friend, mostly because he had been broken out of his flow, but quickly recovered. He laughed along then, in the full-body way that he did, as though his happiness was trying to force itself out of his pores. He knew he was in public so he couldn’t flail in the way he normally would but Jongin still braced himself for a sudden, accidental hit to the arm. 

“Come on, you clumsy idiot,” Jongin said with an abundance of affection. With a nod of the head, he directed Chanyeol to an empty table. 

Chanyeol dug into his chocolate muffin and latte right away, starved from all of the walking and attempts to critique Jongin’s choices without causing offence. His friend’s taste in fashion was abominable but at least he didn’t have long purple hair anymore. Chanyeol thought he suited the black hair that reached his earlobes much, much better. The style made him look more handsome and less like a comic book villain. 

He was still eating his muffin when Jongin practically inhaled the last bite of his sandwich and started to speak again, delivering even more loaded questions. Chanyeol needed a lie-down. 

“So...how’s your sugar daddy?”

Chanyeol mustered up the fiercest daggers he possibly could and spat back. “Piss off.”

With a sigh, his friend slouched back in his seat, grabbing for his ice coffee. 

“You’re such a spoilsport,” Jongin whined as though Chanyeol had somehow wronged him by requesting some privacy, “why won’t you tell me about him? There’s no need to be embarrassed.”

“How many times?!” Chanyeol spoke too loudly, never quite developing a knack for controlling the volume of his voice. For the first few years of his life, his mother wondered whether he was deaf, “I’m NOT embarrassed. There is nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“Even the fact that he is old?” 

“He isn’t even old!”

“Well, why do you say stuff like ‘we went home early because he was too tired’ or ‘we went home because we couldn’t find a close parking space’ when you’re talking to Minseok?” Jongin raised his arms in question, unphased by Chanyeol’s glaring.

“Have you been eavesdropping?” His voice was already wobbling with hurt and anger. Jongin only knew half the story and that alone made Chanyeol’s head hurt with panic. “You don’t know the whole story so...stop assuming. Please.”

His friend sighed in resignation before taking a prolonged sip of his drink. 

“I’m sorry,” he said eventually, “it’s only because I care about you, Chanyeol. You’re my friend so I want to know about your life. I’m not trying to tease you. I promise.”

Without realising, Chanyeol had ripped apart an entire napkin, the pieces of tissue in bits and scattered across the table. With a kind smile, Jongin swept the pieces up into one pile and dropped them onto his plate. 

“What are we going to do with you, huh?” Jongin winked at Chanyeol who had finally calmed down enough to laugh along. 

“You know you can trust me?” Jongin asked. 

Chanyeol nodded, albeit confused. To Chanyeol, that wasn’t even a question. He and Jongin had known each other since they were teenagers and they had been through so much together; Jongin had been there through Chanyeol’s darkest times when he felt as though the world wasn’t kind enough to people like him. Chanyeol had been Jongin’s shoulder to cry on and his hand to hold when his friend told him that he was trans and that he hoped Chanyeol could still love him all the same. Chanyeol could trust Jongin with his life. But it wasn’t his secret he was keeping; it was Baekhyun’s.

  
  


The press and promotions for Baekhyun’s launch lasted exactly two weeks and before Chanyeol knew it, he was on his way to meet his boyfriend again. 

As he sat on the bus heading to the botanical gardens they were meeting at, his excitement was palpable. He was hardly able to sit still in his seat, his leg bouncing up and down as the energy threatened to explode out of him. He continuously locked and unlocked his phone to do something - anything - with his hands but when it started to get sweaty and glitchy he dropped it in his bag. 

“Are you nervous, dear?”

Turning his head, Chanyeol came face to face with an elderly woman in the seat behind. She must have been watching his fidgeting and interpreted it wrong.

“Oh!” He said with a huge grin, clumsily turning around to face her, “I’m not nervous. I’m just excited because I’m going on a date and I haven’t been on one for ages,” he stopped himself, suddenly aware that he had been waffling, “sorry if I was making too much noise.” 

The smile she offered him was awfully fond, something Chanyeol couldn’t quite understand. She didn’t know him so why did she seem so pleased for him? Maybe she had strong feelings towards young love. Then again, Chanyeol’s mom always told him that he had an infectious smile. She said that even from when he was a little boy, strangers took to him like ducks to water. For Chanyeol, this was a point of personal pride. 

“That’s lovely. You’re going to the gardens?” She asked, obviously knowing that the gardens were the bus’ main stop for miles. They were sort of in the middle of nowhere. 

Chanyeol nodded and bit his tongue as he often found himself doing, not wanting to talk the woman’s ears off about his favourite tropical flower room or the small animal building he forced Baekhyun to spend hours in.

“How lovely! I didn’t think people your age still did such things. I would have expected you to go to the cinema or something,” she spoke as though the cinema was somehow new and fangled when she surely knew they were far from it. Chanyeol wasn’t a huge fan of the cinema. He hated to sit still for so long unless he was watching a Marvel film. “So tell me about her,” she leaned forward in anticipation as the bus reached yet another stop on a deserted road, “what’s her name?”

Not sure what to say, Chanyeol began to fidget his hands, wishing he could click some buttons on his phone to calm himself down. What should he say? Should he lie? Junmyeon had always told him that it was always better to say nothing than to lie but Chanyeol was stuck on a bus with this woman for ten more minutes. 

She did seem like a kind lady, though, and her light eyes had such an inviting aura to them that Chanyeol felt compelled to just tell her.

“I am actually going to see my boyfriend,” he said boldly if not a little quickly, “his name is Baekhyun and we both like flowers a lot.”

She didn’t say anything at first and Chanyeol began to feel a bit hot. If he had timed his journey correctly, judging by where they were, he would be off the bus within a few minutes. He could probably last that long without crying or freaking out. 

As was often the case, however, he needn’t have worried at all because as soon as the woman’s initial shock had passed, she was smiling so brightly, her hands clasped together near her chest.

“Oh, my darling,” she gushed, “that is so romantic! You know, those gardens have been there for so long that my husband and I used to visit before we were married 50 years ago. I always loved the rose gardens.”

Chanyeol leaned forwards in his seat, totally enraptured by her story. “Really?! I used to go as a little boy and I loved the tropical garden. Sometimes it’s a bit hot and the air is really humid which isn’t that pleasant and my boyfriend uses a cane and sometimes a wheelchair so he slips all over the place and,” he paused for breath, surprised to see that the woman was so engaged, “well, it is kind of funny, actually.” 

He giggled at the memories of them fooling around in the tropical garden, usually because they were trying to dodge the butterflies that were let loose in there (Baekhyun was scared of them but Chanyeol thought he would look beautiful with one in his hair). The woman laughed along with him, already sharing her own stories of her and her husband secretly stealing a pansy for her to wear in her own hair.

“It was terrible,” she said through childish laughter, “but that’s young love! Utterly fearless.”

Chanyeol couldn’t help but agree. When it came to Baekhyun, there was nothing that he feared. Their love for each other was so all-consuming that he knew that nothing could dissolve it. 

When Chanyeol finally emerged from the bus and made his way towards the all-glass visitor centre, he did so with a spring in his step and with a new surge of energy. After all, the woman had allowed him to talk about flowers for the entire rest of the way.

When he arrived, he decided to head straight over to the gift shop. They sold Baekhyun’s favourite type of chocolate and, even though he tried not to eat too much, he always accepted a bar from Chanyeol when they went on their dates. 

Chanyeol was perusing the self, looking for the salted caramel flavour when he felt a prod right on his left arse cheek. He didn’t need to turn around to see who it was. 

“Is that how you greet the love of your life?” Chanyeol asked, trying to sound disinterested but not being able to force down his twitching lips. 

“What am I supposed to do when he has such a lovely bum?” Baekhyun punctuated his question with a squeeze to both of Chanyeol’s cheeks at the same time, shocking Chanyeol so much that he jumped up in the air and nearly dropped the chocolate in his hands. The second he turned around, any irritation he was harbouring dissipated. 

Baekhyun looked so beautiful. Since the last time they had seen each other in person, Baekhyun had dyed his hair a shocking white colour and Chanyeol thought it made him look like a fairy prince. His soft eyes were dusted with a touch of silver eyeshadow and his lips were tinted a light pink colour. He looked ethereal and Chanyeol wanted to kiss him right then and there but he had to wait. They could never be sure who was watching them. 

“You shouldn’t squeeze my bum like that,” Chanyeol whined immaturely as though Baekhyun cared about what he ‘should’ do in public spaces, “because now I want to snog your face off and I can’t!” 

Baekhyun’s eyes scrunched up and his mouth fell open in loud, cacophonous laughter. If there was one thing that he and Chanyeol had in common, it was the obscene amount of noise they could make when they were together. 

“But I’m at the perfect angle for it,” he said, turning the wheels on his chair to demonstrate, briefly threatening to run over Chanyeol’s toes, “you can’t expect me to not grab the opportunity by the...ass cheeks.” He made grabby hands towards Chanyeol’s tummy and the other man squealed, hating being tickled. 

“Okay! Okay! Fine!” Chanyeol was laughing so hard that he couldn’t quieten himself down and Baekhyun really wasn’t helping, “let me just get this chocolate before we get kicked out then we’ll go.” 

Baekhyun pouted in disappointment but reluctantly followed Chanyeol to the till. 

While they made their way to the first garden - tropical, of course - Chanyeol broke off cubes of chocolate and fed them directly to Baekhyun since his hands weren’t free.

“You okay?” Chanyeol asked, turning his head to the side so he could sneak in a piece for himself, forgetting that Baekhyun would know he was talking with his mouth full. “You haven’t used your chair for a while.”

Baekhyun stopped moving and opened his mouth, waiting for Chanyeol to drop another piece on his tongue. Then he shrugged before moving towards the automatic doors into the main centre. 

“I’m just tired. The past few weeks have been busy,” he said as though it was just a given that he worked hard. Which Chanyeol couldn’t argue with; Baekhyun was the CEO of a huge fashion company so there was little time to rest. Chanyeol could still hope though. Hope that Baekhyun would sleep a little better or work shorter days. But his boyfriend was far too motivated and far too determined to make his brand the best there was so Chanyeol simply had to let him do what he wanted and then give him lots of foot massages and cuddles. 

“Okay,” Chanyeol replied simply, knowing not to worry too much. Baekhyun promised he would tell Chanyeol if there was anything to worry about and Chanyeol trusted him to the ends of the earth. 

“Anyway, sexy,” Baekhyun sounded flirtatious, “how are you? You’re very chatty. You were quiet yesterday. I thought I’d broken you.”

The night before, they had been listening to music over skype and Chanyeol could make his fair amount of noise and he loved singing with Baekhyun, sometimes he would take out his guitar and they would play together. But after a long day at the shop combined with his boisterous housemates, he wasn’t really feeling it so he had been abnormally quiet. 

“I am great actually,” he spoke around even more stolen chocolate. “I met a nice old lady on the bus and I told her about the tropical garden and she told me about the time she and her husband stole one of the flowers. I told her about you and she was really nice about it. She says ‘hi’, too.” 

Baekhyun stopped moving and looked up at Chanyeol with so much intensity. Chanyeol wondered whether he had said something wrong but he didn’t miss out on Baekhyun’s wide eyes which were brimming with love. 

“What?” Chanyeol asked, wondering what brought on this sudden affection. 

“You spoke to someone on the bus?” Baekhyun sounded incredulous but not judgemental or mean. “That’s...you never do that. That’s great, Yeollie!” 

Then it dawned on him. Chanyeol didn’t usually start up conversations like that with strangers. Sure, he had his moments. With some people, he immediately clicked and talking to them came as naturally as breathing. The funny thing was, he hadn’t even picked up on it as abnormal. 

He blushed and stared down at his shoes. “I...she asked me about flowers...that’s probably why…”

“Well,” Baekhyun said with raised eyebrows and a smug face, already moving towards the door to the room, “I think that’s amazing. And I am very proud of you and I love you lots and if I could make out with you in the palm tree section, I would.”

Unfortunately for Baekhyun, the tropical room was very busy and engaging in such public displays of affection probably wasn’t a great idea when there were so many bystanders.

“Blegh! It’s hot in here!” Baekhyun didn’t like being in the close heat very much but he still kept coming back.

The path was a little uneven so Baekhyun struggled to push over some of the stone floor tiles. Eventually, Chanyeol just decided to push him which, with his impulsive childishness and Baekhyun’s tendency to enable him, usually ended in Baekhyun being raced down a hill or the like. No serious injuries yet.

“Right!” Baekhyun gestured for Chanyeol to stop in front of a star-shaped red and white flower. “This one is new. Tell me about this one.”

So, Chanyeol did. He sat on the ground next to Baekhyun and told him all about the flowers he could. While he did so, Baekhyun watched on, watching Chanyeol instead of the flowers because he reckoned Chanyeol was far prettier. Baekhyun hung onto his every word, his chin resting in his palm and his elbow resting on his knees. He could have listened to Chanyeol talk for hours and hours on end and would never tire of him. Baekhyun loved how much passion and interest Chanyeol channelled into the things he cared about; his work, his love for nature and animals, and his love for Baekhyun. As far as Baekhyun was concerned, he was the luckiest man alive. 

Chanyeol finished talking and turned to face Baekhyun, a peaceful silence passing between them. The room had emptied out and the couple had no idea how long they had been sitting there for. Time was no object when they were together.

“Why do you always look at me like that?” Chanyeol asked, running his hand up and down Baekhyun’s leg, feeling his warmth through the material of his jeans. 

Baekhyun tucked a piece of Chanyeol’s hair behind his ears. Chanyeol’s hair was a floppy, dark brown, mess because he hated having his hair cut. He still looked handsome but it prevented Baekhyun from clearly seeing his face.

“Because. I think you’re beautiful.” 

In a moment of madness, Chanyeol leaned forwards, the backs of his legs straining from the awkward position, and kissed Baekhyun on the lips. Baekhyun’s head was pushed back from the force but he soon recovered, pulling Chanyeol in closer by the back of his head. After so long, the kiss felt like coming home. They kissed intensely, their mouths practised and fitting together like pieces of the same puzzle, feeling the humid air heat up around them.

Grabbing onto the bars of Baekhyun’s chair, Chanyeol pulled his boyfriend closer and climbed up onto his knees. He wanted to wrap his arms around Baekhyun’s waist. He needed to feel him so close that he forgot where he started and Baekhyun ended. Baekhyun moaned into his mouth as Chanyeol started to lick his lips which forced a breathy laugh out of Chanyeol. If they were caught, they would be so embarrassed but they were too wrapped up in each other to care.

They only pulled apart when a small boy ran past them. He wasn’t interested in what they were doing, only interested in the butterfly flying above his head. Baekhyun followed the small boy with his eyes, having always adored children. Chanyeol turned to mush at the admiration in his eyes as the child laughed in delight when the creature landed on his hand. 

It took Chanyeol about three hours to look at every single part of the gardens that he wanted to and even when he was done, the sun was high in the sky and they had time to sit together on the grass and people watch. 

“I brought you a diet coke,” Chanyeol said as he plopped down on the grass next to where Baekhyun was already sitting, “and a bowl of fruit.”

Baekhyun turned his nose up at that. He had a serious sweet tooth and even though he knew that his body hated refined sugar and anything unhealthy, he still wished that Chanyeol would sneak him some and say nothing. 

“Hm. Thanks, babe.” He lifted his head, lips protruding in a pout waiting for a kiss. When he eventually got one as soon as Chanyeol sat down, he wiggled in happiness. Chanyeol gave the best kisses. “What you got?”

“A chocol-”

“Chocolate muffin and a latte,” Baekhyun shook his head followed by a chuckle, “one thing I like about you. You aren’t full of surprises.” 

The weather was divine that day. The skies were blue without a cloud in sight, birds danced above their heads and children played in the space around them. They took it all in while they lay there, on the ground together, holding hands. 

Such moments were the most precious. The world wasn’t going to bother them, no one expected anything of them. They could simply lie there. Chanyeol longed to lie with Baekhyun forever. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I created a playlist for this fic if you are interested. Just some pretty songs that I wrote the fic to. 
> 
> https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1jTWTM7NmHMddjfqcAQATX?si=a1a4ef7f66bd4625

For Chanyeol, life fell into two separate parts; his days with Baekhyun and his days without. 

The days spent with his boyfriend were always rich and filled with laughter and excitement. They were comfortable, simple, and perfect in every way. But neutrality must coincide with perfection or else life loses its spark. How can one appreciate the sun if they never see the clouds?

This was what Chanyeol reminded himself of on the days when he couldn’t see his boyfriend. He didn’t harbour any resentment towards his boyfriend or his work, only towards the number of hours in the day. Perhaps if the days were longer, there would be ample time for life and love to exist together. He still missed Baekhyun, though. 

On the days when he couldn’t be with Baekhyun because the other man was working away or because he was at the office, Chanyeol would bury himself in his work. This wasn’t a problem for Chanyeol as he always loved his work. He believed himself very lucky to be able to fulfil his passion for art full time without having to worry about how he’d pay the bills or deal with the burden of going out into the world of work. He had always feared working as a child, terrified by all of the pressure and expectations. He much preferred to draw.

The commission he was working on that week was pretty standard. A children’s author had approached him and requested artwork for her latest release, a story about a young girl who befriends a mermaid. Nothing spectacular and not quite what Chanyeol loved to work on but it still allowed for creative freedom. He loved working with the bright blues and the iridescent tones of sea creatures. 

To pass the time, he reimagined the story in his mind to be one of two young women falling in love. In his artwork, he allowed himself the joy of adding in subtle glances and soft, affectionate smiles just for him. No one would ever know but to Chanyeol, the mermaid swam to the shore to find love and found it in the young human girl. It would be Chanyeol’s little secret.

“What’cha doin’, Yeollie?” 

Minseok, one of his many housemates, had taken a seat next to him on the kitchen counter. Usually, Chanyeol would work from his studio a few streets over from their house but on that day in particular, he had fancied some company. He certainly got it, too, because they had a full house that day.

“Ah. Just this commission,” he placed his pen down and turned to look out of the window. The weather was beautiful and Chanyeol wondered whether Baekhyun could see the sunshine from his office. Baekhyun’s office was on a lower floor which sometimes left it in the shade and the thought made Chanyeol a little sad sometimes. Baekhyun promised he didn’t mind. 

“It’s lovely,” Minseok complimented his work, sliding one page towards him. The image depicted the young mermaid clinging to a rock, gazing up at the young woman standing atop it. Both girls appeared captivated by one another, never having seen a person of their kind before. “What’s the story?”

“Girl makes friend with a mermaid,” Chanyeol shrugged, turning back away from the window to look at his drawings again, “the usual.”

Minseok hummed and looked closer at another set of illustrations. “Doesn’t look that way to me,” he said, “they’re very obviously more than friends. I don’t look at Jongin like that.” He pointed to one drawing of the mermaid, in particular, watching on in awe as the human girl danced along the beach, “but I’ve seen that look on Jongdae once or twice.”

Jongdae was Minseok’s husband. They had married one another a few months before, a wonderful occasion with all of their friends but only a small celebration held back at the house. At one stage, Chanyeol had feared that his friends would want to move out and mess up the stability of their household. Of course, he would be delighted for his friends and the next stage of their lives but he would be crushed to see them go. By some miracle, and maybe some poor decision-making, the married couple opted to stay at the house permanently. They said the peace and quiet of their own home would be unbearable. 

At Minseok’s words, Chanyeol’s eyes widened in panic and he turned to face his friend for some kind of reassurance. 

“Shit! Is it that obvious!” He really didn’t want to start again. “I was trying to be subtle but if I’ve fucked it up I’ll have to start again!”   


His friend rolled his eyes and reached over to pinch his cheek affectionately. The others in the house were far less liberal with such physical displays of friendship, much preferring profanity and insults, but Minseok was super clingy. Chanyeol loved it. It made him feel closer to his friend.

“You haven’t fucked it up, Chanyeol,” Minseok insisted, “it isn’t obvious at all. I just know you very well.” He signed off his statement with a wink. 

In fact, Minseok was probably the one friend who knew Chanyeol best of all, if only by mere coincidence. Despite Chanyeol’s tenacity when it came to keeping Baekhyun’s identity secret, Minseok was tricky and had managed to wheedle more information out of Chanyeol over time. 

First came his name which seems innocuous in itself but it began to build a picture of a person in Minseok’s mind and from there stemmed an insatiable curiosity.

It wasn’t long before Chanyeol revealed Baekhyun’s age (even Minseok was shocked to discover that Baekhyun wasn’t that old. Rumours spread quickly amongst their friends and usually stuck forever). Next came small details like the TV shows they watched together, the places they visited as a pair, and the conversations they had.

Everything came to a T when Minseok caught Chanyeol watching Baekhyun’s Paris fashion launch at 4 am one time. Chanyeol had never cared much about fashion. 

From that point on, Minseok became Chanyeol’s one confidant, the person he would go to with his concerns, or even to gush at. Once, they whispered in the living room about how amazing the sex was and giggled like teenagers. Though Minseok hadn’t met Baekhyun yet, he told Chanyeol that he couldn’t wait to meet him and that he sounded amazing, even if he had only heard about him through Chanyeol who was incredibly biased. 

Chanyeol always spoke to Baekhyun in the evening, either on facetime or skype depending on where Baekhyun was or what his internet connection was like. Chanyeol’s evening. Baekhyun was less pedantic about such things. 

That evening, in particular, Baekhyun was at home so Chanyeol didn’t have to wait late for him to find some spare time in the middle of his hectic schedule. 

Having shut the door to his bedroom, making sure he didn’t get any unwanted visitations (namely from Sehun who hated sleeping on his own and liked to take advantage of Chanyeol’s double bed and fluffy blankets), Chanyeol waited on the bed with his laptop loaded and ready.

The skype tone only sounded for a few seconds before Chanyeol was looking right at Baekhyun, greeting him with a wave. 

“Hi, babe!” Baekhyun waved back, his nails freshly painted a bright blue colour, and his smile more lively than it had been for days. It seemed he had gained some of his energy back which was a great relief to Chanyeol. “How you doing?”

“I’m doing good! You look nice today.”

“You’re a charmer! You don’t look half bad yourself,” Baekhyun said, his tone dark and flirtatious, “I am finding your biceps in that basketball shirt very, very pleasing after a long day at work.”

Chanyeol smirked in return and began to flex said muscles. Despite being the type to prefer sitting down to doing any kind of physical activity, Chanyeol had taken to going to the gym in recent months. He loved it because it gave him a chance to clear his head. Baekhyun loved it even more because Chanyeol’s body had never looked better. Or ‘tastier’ as Baekhyun put it.

“Oi!” Someone spoke from inside Baekhyun’s flat.

Heating up with embarrassment, Chanyeol dropped his arm into his lap and marvelled at Baekhyun’s maniacal cackling. 

A young woman dropped onto the sofa next to Baekhyun and grabbed the laptop from him.

“Chanyeol! Could you please wait 'til I’ve gone home to make him horny?! I’ve only just eaten, you’ll make me vomit and I have plans with Seulgi tonight!”

Chanyeol’s initial assumption was that she was joking but the horror in her face suggested otherwise.

“Sorry, Taeyeon! He didn’t tell me you were there,” he glared at Baekhyun who was covering his giggles with a clenched fist, “I thought you went home early on Tuesdays.”

Taeyeon was Baekhyun’s part-time carer or, as he liked to refer to her, his ‘fairy in disguise.’ She only helped out a few times a week, with the cleaning, running errands, or just general friendly company. She came around more often on Baekhyun’s bad days. Over time, she and Baekhyun had developed a sibling-like relationship that often descended into utter chaos and fighting. Chanyeol loved Taeyeon, not only because she was friendly and absolutely hilarious, but because she was a glimpse into Baekhyun’s wider life. 

“I do but we decided to order a takeaway and it took ages to arrive,” Taeyeon explained, pushing Baekhyun out of the frame to reveal more of her pretty face, framed by long black hair. “So, I’ve been watching TV.”

Baekhyun didn’t look best pleased with her response. “YOU wanted a takeaway. I asked you to climb up and put the blind back on the skylight in the office because it fell off. But you haven’t done it.”

Chanyeol sat back and braced himself for even more bickering, even if it was a little amusing. 

“And I will,” Taeyeon said with a hint of offence, shocked that Baekhyun would even insinuate that she couldn’t follow instructions, “tomorrow.”

This made Chanyeol snort whereas Baekhyun frowned at his friend. 

“Anyway,” Taeyeon stood up and grabbed her bag from the seat beside her, “I best leave you lovebirds to it. I’m sure you’re dying to have a lovely, PG chat.”

She leaned down to leave a kiss on Baekhyun’s head, relaying his instructions to her for the next day and asking if he needed anything from the shop. Baekhyun said that he would go himself but would like a coffee in the morning. Taeyeon tutted at that. 

“Bye, Yeollie,” Taeyeon blew a kiss at Chanyeol and then she was gone.

As soon as the door beeped to signal that it was locked, Baekhyun leaned into the laptop and whispered, “now she’s gone, can you take your shirt off?” He fluttered his eyelashes, “pretty please.”

Without hesitation, Chanyeol ripped the item of clothing over his head and Baekhyun let out a salacious groan.

“Fucking hell,” Baekhyun hissed, his hand surreptitiously moving out of the frame and downwards, “you’re so fucking sexy.”

“Your turn,” Chanyeol commanded with a raised eyebrow and Baekhyun didn’t wait to comply.

After a steamy session of virtual sex, both men sat in their respective homes, basking in the afterglow and panting, so overcome with arousal that they couldn’t force the air out of their lungs. 

“Fuck,” Chanyeol hissed, wiping a sheen of sweat from his brow, “you’re so fucking hot. I want to fuck you for real. Like right now.” 

Breaking the atmosphere, Baekhyun laughed at the absurdity of that suggestion. It was way too late and Chanyeol didn’t even drive. 

“You know, you seem really sweet and innocent,” Baekhyun said through deep gasps, “but you fucking aren’t. You’re a beast, Park Chanyeol. And I am very privileged to see this side of you. People don’t know what they’re missing!”

“I learned from the best,” Chanyeol replied suggestively. 

Except Baekhyun was a cheeky menace who never passed up an opportunity to tease Chanyeol. 

“Yeah. Jongin.”   


“That was ONE TIME! ONCE!” Chanyeol was outraged because, okay Jongin was some kind of sex god and sex with him was truly mind-blowing, to the point where Chanyeol thought about their night together for weeks. But he rejected the idea that he was only good in bed because of fucking Jongin, of all people. 

“Well, I think he rubbed off on you,” Baekhyun said with a shrug, despite not actually knowing Jongin, “and I would very much like to rub on you,” the tone of his voice turned sweeter and he ran his hand awkwardly over the laptop screen, “I miss having you here, babe.”

Chanyeol’s face fell, his chest suddenly welling up with sadness. Baekhyun was right. Having his boyfriend on the other side of a screen was nothing compared to holding him in his arms.

“I miss you too, Baekkie,” he sighed and looked at the clock on his laptop screen, “we only have to wait 4 days and 7 hours until we can see each other again. That isn’t too bad, is it?”

The other man shook his head. “Not too long at all. I’ve been keeping count, too. I don’t like to feel left out.”

Chanyeol had always had a sharp penchant for keeping time and, while Baekhyun had found it overwhelming at first, he soon found his own joy in counting down towards the things he looked forward to. Even if he didn’t count quite as closely as Chanyeol liked to.

“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that,” Baekhyun said, clearing his throat a few times in discomfort and shifting in his seat, “you know I told you about my friends coming to mine on Thursday?”

Chanyeol nodded in response. Once a month, Baekhyun spent an evening with his friends without fail. Sometimes, they would go out together, maybe to a restaurant or to a bar which Baekhyun loved to do; he wasn’t much of an extrovert, much preferring to stay at home, but he said his friends were wonderful company and made every situation either hilarious or outrageously fun. On other occasions, the group of friends would stay over at one of their houses for the night. After all, it was only fair to tend to all of their wants and needs.

“Well, I was talking to Taeyeon about them and she suggested that maybe I take a leap of faith and trust them for once in my life,” he snorted at his own joke, “and start being a little more honest with them.”

He lifted his eyes to the camera, seemingly staring right at Chanyeol, his eyes a mixture of anxiety and longing. It appeared that he was waiting for some kind of response, too nervous to complete the sentiment in full, but he sighed when he realised that Chanyeol didn’t quite follow. 

“What I mean is,” he bit his fingernails while he searched for the words, “I was wondering if you would like to come too.”

All Chanyeol could do was blink. 

Not once in their entire relationship, which spanned a long time at that stage, had Baekhyun expressed any desire to let Chanyeol into his private life. Of course, this was not as a result of shame or malice. Nothing of the sort. But Baekhyun was adamant about keeping Chanyeol out of his world, away from the pressures that came with being a well-known individual. Sometimes, Chanyeol wondered whether Baekhyun was over-protective and whether he should put more faith into Chanyeol and trust that he could protect himself.

This was a thought Chanyeol had never considered voicing so to see Baekhyun sitting before him, looking on with such hope, left him scrambling for a response. He would be lying if he said the prospect wasn’t daunting; Chanyeol found all manner of social situations intimidating, let alone meeting his boyfriend’s favourite people in the world. But at the same time, Chanyeol could already feel the excitement bubbling up in his chest. Was this a sign that Baekhyun was finally ready to start opening up?

“Ah. It doesn’t matter,” Baekhyun sounded awfully dejected having misinterpreted Chanyeol's silence, still smiling but his head was bowed, “I shouldn’t have asked. Don’t worry about it.”   


“No, no, no, no,” Chanyeol leaned closer to the screen as though he would be able to reach Baekhyun more easily, “I really, really want to come. I would love that so much, Baekhyunie, I promise. But...why now?”

The tension visibly rolled off Baekhyun’s shoulders and his body sagged from the relief. “Oh...I’m not sure. I suppose it just feels right. I’m not sure what has changed but the opportunity has presented itself so I thought...why not?”

No matter what Baekhyun’s reasoning may have been, Chanyeol was over the moon. For so long, he had wanted nothing more than to be allowed into Baekhyun’s life. Partly because he wanted to feel special to his boyfriend, he wanted to feel as though he was treasured enough and loved enough to be shown off. As more time passed, Chanyeol doubted he would ever be granted such a privilege and slowly reconciled with the idea of just having Baekhyun; not a bad prospect at all but it felt somewhat lonely. Love is there to be shared, not to be hidden away like a dirty secret. 

Finally, he had the chance to prove to another person how much he adored Baekhyun and how greatly they enriched each other’s lives.

Two days wasn’t very much time to prepare for such a monumental event and, as a result, Chanyeol had struggled to focus on his work. Instead of focusing on his brief and sticking to the very strict instructions of his client, he found himself getting carried away by his own imagination, adding a certain vibrancy and life to his work where it ought not be. Signs of Baekhyun ran through his work in the form of bright pinks, not particularly fitting with the theme, but his boyfriend’s favourite colour. 

As it often does when one’s mind is racing, time passed quickly and before he knew it, Chanyeol was standing before the mirror in his bedroom, inspecting the outfit he had picked out and running over what he would say to Baekhyun’s friends when he met them.

“You look nice,” his housemate, Sehun, complimented him from where he was leaning against the bedroom door frame. Sehun was shadowing Chanyeol like a lost puppy that evening, complaining of loneliness since his boyfriend had left for work. 

Sehun was in a relationship with their other housemate, Junmyeon and they were sickening together most of the time. The two of them worked as drag queens, often crossing paths when they worked at the same venues and, given that Sehun was a younger, less experienced queen, Junmyeon had quickly taken him under his knowledgeable wing. To everyone but Sehun, it became glaringly obvious that Junmyeon’s feelings towards Sehun ran deeper than a mentor to mentee. 

From afar, Junmyeon pined over the younger man, quietly glowing with his affections towards him, never expecting or demanding anything from him. Maybe Junmyeon would have been content to guard his feelings but he wasn’t given the choice to love Sehun in secret.

Unfortunately, Chanyeol’s tongue had a mind of its own and he had blurted out Junmyeon’s secret before he was aware of what he was doing. Even though the pair hit it off immediately and had been attached at the hip ever since Chanyeol felt horrible. He did have a terrible habit of acting on impulse at times. 

The older man was working at a club that night so he would likely be very late home but Sehun hated the silence of the house at night. He was much more used to blaring music and cheers filling his ears. At least Chanyeol could fill some of the silence.

“Thank you,” Chanyeol said as he looked in the mirror. He ran his hands over his pink dungarees which he had laid over a pale blue t-shirt. The mixture of his own and Baekhyun’s favourite colours provided him with a quiet comfort somehow, he just hoped he would make a good first impression. After all, Chanyeol was more a quirky artist than a rich fashion expert and he didn’t want to look out of place. “Do you think it’s too much? Or not enough?”

With a shake of his head, Sehun leaned off the wall and made his way over to Chanyeol. He grabbed a glittery eye pencil from Chanyeol’s dressing table and stood before his friend. Delicately, he rested his hand on Chanyeol’s chin to keep his head stable before etching a small purple flower on his right cheek. 

“What was that for?” Chanyeol turned to admire the petals in the mirror, tracing around the shapes with his index finger. 

“Because,” Sehun hugged Chanyeol from behind and rested his chin on his shoulder, “you don’t just wear your heart on your sleeve, you wear your flower on your cheek. Everything that is wonderful about you - your amazing brain, your magical imagination, your sense of humour - it shines out of you,” he placed a kiss on Chanyeol’s clothed shoulder, “this flower,” he poked Chanyeol’s cheek, “is so you don’t forget that. And so they can’t ignore what you’re really about.”

The two of them looked at their reflections in the mirror, Sehun’s tattered and oversized grey tracksuit a great contrast to Chanyeol’s bright colours. Standing there, they couldn’t be more different as people but Chanyeol had grown to love Sehun since he had entered into his life. 

“This isn’t too much,” Sehun gestured to Chanyeol’s outfit in the mirror, “it’s just right. It’s just Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol was far too nervous to take the bus to Baekhyun’s house so he had begged for a lift from Jongin’s friend, Kyungsoo. No one else in the house that night could actually drive a car so Chanyeol was eternally grateful that Kyungsoo was around that day. To be honest, he hardly ever left. 

“Jongin, can you turn that shit music off?” Kyungsoo snapped, reached across the center console and turned the radio down, his tattooed arm illuminated by the setting sun. 

There was something awfully intimidating about Kyungsoo. He was a lot more subdued than Jongin was but somehow emanated just as much energy. He was a tattoo artist and was covered in his fair share of ink; skulls constructed from butterflies, words in a language Chanyeol couldn’t decipher, music notes trailing from his middle finger and along the path of his veins. There was nothing intimidating about any of these things but Chanyeol supposed he had ideas in his mind about what inked people were like and they were hard to shake.

“You’re just miserable,” Jongin spat back, already having turned the music back on, “I had to listen to your crap heavy metal bollocks while you ate me out yesterday! Do you know how fucking miserable that was for me?!”   


“Will you shut the fuck up?!” Kyungsoo turned to Jongin in outrage, briefly looking behind to Chanyeol, apologising with his eyes for the oversharing. “Was there any need for that? I would rather not have my sex life shared with the group, thanks. And,” he clicked the radio so that it ejected from the console and dropped it on the back seat, “I’m not listening to that experimental EDM crap, okay?”

Sure, Chanyeol had no interest in his friends’ sex lives, quite the opposite, but he couldn’t help but wonder how there was so much tension between the pair. All of the time. 

“Are you sure you two actually like each other?” He asked in genuine curiosity, “ because you spend all of your time together, you have sex all of the time - which we are all aware of because you are actually quite loud,” he looked at Jongin in the rearview mirror, “especially you. I have to sleep with podcasts on when Kyungsoo is round.”

Both men cleared their throats in discomfort but Jongin recovered much quicker.

“I think we tolerate each other,” Jongin said frankly, “as you know, child, I was not bestowed upon by the ability to love romantically-”

“You’re dead inside,” Kyungsoo chipped in, concentrating on the road and so missing Jongin’s filthy glare.

“Aromantic, actually. And you’re a bigot,” he tutted before turning to Chanyeol, “but I do have the sexual prowess of a carnal animal in the worst heat of its life. Just so happens that Kyungsoo is good in bed. And he likes comic books. That helps, too.”

“Jesus, thanks, dickwad.” Kyungsoo was turning into Baekhyun’s apartment complex, searching for a place to park up. When he had turned off the engine he turned around to look at Chanyeol, too, “we do like each other. In a sense.”

Chanyeol supposed he would have to take their word for it because he didn’t have much time to hang around. He found Kyungsoo and Jongin’s friends with benefits arrangement to be a little unusual because it seemed to run deeper than that from where Chanyeol was sitting. Then again, that wasn’t a possibility on Jongin’s end and they probably were just really close friends. Even if it never seemed that way.

“Anyway, lover boy,” Jongin turned to face Chanyeol with one of his rare tender looks, “less talk about us and our sex lives. Go get your man! I know you won’t tell us about him or why he lives in fucking Gangnam, of all places. But one question,” Jongin leaned in to whisper but he was loud enough to be heard down the street, probably, “is he good in bed?”

“Jongin! Mind your business,” Kyungsoo thumped Jongin on the arm, landing on bare skin as the other man was dressed in only a vest, shorts and socks with sandals. Garish. Although Kyungsoo did subtly look at Chanyeol in the mirror, his eyes alight with curiosity. 

Chanyeol sighed, debating whether this was one of those times when he shouldn’t really overshare. 

“Go on! Tell us!” Jongin taunted.

“I mean...he is very...passionate,” he winced at his own words, “God! Am I 70?!”

Jongin shook his head, insisting that it was fine and that Chanyeol should keep going. Even Kyungsoo turned around then, resting his inked arm over the back of Jongin’s seat. 

“Well, we have great sex. He’s beautiful and I love him so it feels nice,” Chanyeol felt the grin creeping onto his face, “sometimes we try to be adventurous and he is definitely really bossy,” he chuckled at the memories, “but I’m not bothered about any of that. So long as I’m with him.”

This clearly wasn’t a satisfactory answer for Kyungsoo who looked at Chanyeol with judgemental confusion before facing the front and pulling out his phone. Maybe he was a lot more like Jongin than Chanyeol had anticipated. Maybe a friends with benefits arrangement, something that would feel empty and hurtful to Chanyeol, was just what they both needed to feel whole. 

Jongin’s mouth was hanging open ever so slightly as he tried to find something to say. Hopefully something nice. 

“Well,” he said, his eyes blinking rapidly in surprise, “I think that’s lovely. AW!” He reached over to ruffle Chanyeol’s hair with a coo, “Chanyeollie is in love! Isn’t that lovely, Soo?”

“Er...yeah, sure. Let’s hope he isn’t a dick head, hey?”   


Even Jongin was horrified by that and immediately stared right at Kyungsoo with a glare and comically gritted teeth. They were behaving like bulls in a China shop, clumsily trying to navigate a concept that Jongin didn’t care for and Kyungsoo had long given up on. The concept of romance. 

“How is that helpful, Kyungsoo?”   


“What?! I said I hope he ISN’T a dickhead....which I do!”

“Whatever,” Jongin gave up on their minor tiff. They never had much momentum, anyway. “Well, if you ever need to spice things up, I have good intel that nipple piercings can be quite fun. They really help to keep things fresh in the bedroom. Kyungsoo has o-”

“Will you shut the fuck up!? I swear to fucking God when we get back to yours, I am going to murder you when you aren’t looking!”

“Go on then! Try it! See if I care!”

“What do you mean by that?! You think I couldn’t!?”   


The noise coming from the pair was overwhelming and was beginning to make Chanyeol’s head spin so he thought it was probably time for him to leave. Trying not to disturb their fighting, Chanyeol gently opened the door and climbed out. 

Right before he shut the door behind him, Jongin paused his irritable growling to call out, “have fun, Chanyeollie! Love you!” 

“Yeah, good luck, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo followed afterwards.

They were exhausting but Chanyeol wouldn’t change them for the world. Well, maybe he would provide them with volume dials if he was given the chance.

The journey from the lobby to Baekhyun’s apartment was charged with stress. Despite having been to Baekhyun’s house countless times before, Chanyeol knew this time was going to be different. It wouldn’t only be the two of them and the thought was pretty daunting. The lift felt as though there wasn’t enough air, the corridors felt as though they were closing in on him, and he was shaking too much to punch the numbers into the lock. 

He did question whether he should even be unlocking the door by himself. After all, Baekhyun had guests, of which Chanyeol was one, and it was surely rude to just let himself in. However, he knew he was different from the other guests because he was Baekhyun’s boyfriend. So he forced himself to punch in the numbers and open the door.

“I’m here,” he called out while he struggled to kick off his shoes. The words didn’t come out on the first few tries but he was satisfied that he didn’t accidentally croak. 

No reply came and Chanyeol wondered if anyone had heard him. He knew that there was at least someone in the house because Baekhyun never left the lights on. Then all of his questions were answered when a head popped around the entrance to the hall. 

“Kibum!?!” 

“Chanyeol!?! What on earth- what are you doing? How did you get in here?”   


They both looked at each other in confusion, neither able to comprehend why the other was in Baekhyun’s apartment. Though Chanyeol didn’t know Kibum amazingly well, the other man was a dancer at some of the clubs frequented by Junmyeon and Sehun. They had bumped into each other often when Chanyeol went to spend time with his friends or help out behind the bar when things were really busy. Sometimes, he texted Kibum to ask for ideas when it came to his more difficult commissions; Kibum sometimes made clothes for the drag queens so Chanyeol valued his eye for patterns and colour.

“I...this is Baekhyun’s apartment,” Chanyeol stated the obvious, “I should be asking you why you’re here.”

“I’m Baekhyun’s friend,” Kibum said as though it were obvious, “and I’m here to stay over and meet his boyf-”

He cut himself mid-sentence, proceeding to stand there, gawping at Chanyeol as though he was mutating into some kind of mythical beast. Then out of nowhere, he rushed forward and grabbed Chanyeol’s hand, pulling him into Baekhyun’s study which was just up the hall. He switched on the lights before beginning his interrogation. 

“YOU are Baekhyun’s boyfriend?!” He was in utter disbelief, inspecting Chanyeol as though he expected him to vanish into thin air like a mirage of some kind. “You kept that quiet!” 

“I kept it quiet from everyone because of Baekhyun’s-” he stopped to frantically rub his face with the palm of his hand. This was not part of the plan for the evening and he hadn’t counted on someone he actually knew finding out about his relationship. “How do you know Baekhyun, anyway?”

If the discomfort on Kibum’s face was anything to go by, it appeared that Chanyeol wasn’t the only one keeping secrets from his friends. 

“Let’s just say that the dancing is just my little bit on the side,” he explained in hushed tones, looking shiftily at the door as though someone would suddenly burst in, “I actually work for Baekhyun. I’m one of his chief designers but you CAN NOT tell him about the dancing shit!”

Chanyeol nodded, offering his reassurance. After all, there were two sides to their deal and Chanyeol wanted something from Kibum, too. Admittedly, Chanyeol had some reservations about lying to Baekhyun but it wasn’t as though he had a choice.

“As far as they know,” Kibum pointed in the direction of the front room, “we met at the bar randomly a couple of times. You don’t tell them why. Deal?”

Which was precisely what Kibum explained to Baekhyun’s other friends who were sitting in the living room. Baekhyun was in his bedroom sorting out bedclothes for later on in the evening (he didn’t want to do it later when his friends were too drunk to wait for him) so Kibum was left to the introductions. 

In the armchair sat a young woman, Sunmi, who was introduced as Baekhyun’s PR director. So, she was the one responsible for making sure no one found out about Chanyeol. She wasn’t at all surprised by Chanyeol’s existence and greeted him with a polite nod. Her composure was poised and proper as she sat in the armchair, back straight and legs crossed. She must have arrived straight from work if her attire - a green trouser suit complete with a low-hanging black silk blouse - was anything to go by. Chanyeol thought she was gorgeous.

“You look really nice, Sunmi,” he complimented her without even thinking and then stood stunned when he realised what he had said to a complete stranger. 

If his words could have been interpreted wrong, Sunmi didn’t see them that way and her surprise was soon replaced with good humour. 

“Thank you. I love your make-up. The only other person I know who wears make-up like that is Baekhyun.”

Chanyeol ignored the way Kibum shifted in the background, knowing that the other man was a fan of outrageous make-up looks when he was performing. 

“Who’s talking about me?”

Baekhyun walked into the room then, carrying some blankets in his arms which Chanyeol rushed to take from him and place down on the sofa. As soon as Baekhyun’s arms were free, Chanyeol gathered him in a hug so tight that Baekhyun lifted off the floor. 

With a lighthearted giggle, Baekhyun greeted Chanyeol with a kiss on the lips before tapping him on the arm to be let down. He whispered a sweet ‘hello, love’ before turning to his friends. 

“I see you’ve met my Yeollie,” he said, his voice very obviously bashful and proud. He had waited for his friends to meet his special person for such a long time and he could hardly believe the moment had finally arrived. “I trust you’ve been introduced?”

Kibum raised his arm, commanding everyone’s attention, “I was just getting there before you interrupted me.”

He didn’t notice Baekhyun bobbing his tongue out behind his back as he turned to face the man sitting on the sofa. The man was yet to say anything but he appeared occupied by something on his phone, anyway.

“This is Minho,” Kibum said while the man in question lifted his hand in a quick wave, “he’s the boyfriend I’ve been telling you about,” Kibum directed his words to Chanyeol before facing Baekhyun, “me and Chanyeol already know each other.”

“What?! Really!?” Baekhyun was elated, if not a little confused and started asking one million and one questions as to how they knew each other, whether they were close, everything they had ever done since meeting, and everything they knew about the other. 

Usually, Chanyeol wouldn’t jump at the chance to be the centre of attention but this felt different. Being able to witness two people who were special in his life talk about their joint experiences knowing him set his heart aglow. It made him a little more confident that Baekhyun would love Chanyeol’s other friends because, while they were very different from Baekhyun, they were very similar to Kibum. 

Chanyeol even had fun talking to Sunmi and Minho despite his nerves. At face value he had nothing in common with Kibum’s boyfriend at all; the other man was a professional footballer and lover of sport, travel, and peculiar rap music Chanyeol had never heard of. Yet he matched Chanyeol’s energy in many ways; he was funny, noisy, boisterous and he had Chanyeol’s flair for captivating people when talking about his passions. Chanyeol found himself almost caring about the off-side rule, such was Minho’s charm. Maybe that was how he had managed to entrance Kibum (hater of sport and anything masculine of any kind) and make him fall so deeply in love. It sure seemed that way if Kibum’s quiet admiration of Minho’s words was anything to go by.

There was more Chanyeol had in common with Sunmi, however, and he had a really nice conversation with her while the others fought over computer games later on in the evening. Baekhyun loved playing video games and could do it until all hours of the morning but Chanyeol had never been a fan of sitting still for that long when he wasn’t that into something. For that reason, he was really glad of some extra company. 

Sunmi’s main role at the company was working in PR but, with Baekhyun being the carefree person he was, she was allowed to use the tools at the offices such as the collections of clothing, reference books and fabric samples to construct her own looks. Her eyes glinted with joy while she showed Chanyeol some of her designs from her phone.

“They aren’t amazing,” she was self-deprecating in her words which made no sense to Chanyeol, “but designing is so much fun.”

The outfit in question was perfect, as far as Chanyeol could see. It was different from the things that Baekhyun worked on because, while he worked with laces and monochrome patterns and focused on making bold statements about questioning masculinity, Sunmi’s designs told a story. 

The photograph depicted her in a light blue bodysuit, a satin trail draped from the waist and cascading around her feet. On her legs, she wore white stockings decorated with small pearls and a tiara constructed from larger pearls to match. Combined with her flowing black hair, Chanyeol thought she looked ethereal. 

“You look like a mermaid,” he voiced his thoughts, his imagination already running wild with visions of Sunmi swimming through deep blue waters, searching for someone waiting for her on the shore. “You look lovely.”

She tilted her head in surprise, the compliment throwing her a little off-kilter. She was so unsure of herself and her own ideas, it seemed that she didn’t want to accept Chanyeol’s kindness. 

“He does that,” Baekhyun chipped in, leaning his head backwards at an awkward angle to face Sunmi. “His mind is overflowing with nice thoughts and they just spill out of him. My Chanyeollie is honest,” he looked at Chanyeol then as though he were the moon and the stars combined, “he never says things he doesn’t mean.”

As though he hadn’t just offered Chanyeol an amazing compliment, Baekhyun returned to shooting pixelated bullets at screeching Zombies, leaving Chanyeol to blink at him in surprise. 

Sunmi leaned over to whisper in Chanyeol’s ear, “he’s not so bad at saying nice things, too. He’s a romantic.”

This amused Chanyeol, to hear someone tease Baekhyun’s sappy attitude towards Chanyeol. He was utterly smitten and it was plain to see, even if Baekhyun didn’t think it was obvious. Baekhyun saw himself as being rather tsundere when, in reality, he was a softie. 

“I wanted to look like a mermaid, you know,” Sunmi returned to their previous conversation, looking intently at the photo on her screen, “I had a picture in my mind of a young woman overcoming her fears to achieve her dreams and, I don’t know why, but I thought of a mermaid. You’re the first person who noticed.”

Maybe Chanyeol just had mermaids on his mind because of his work but it seemed pretty obvious to him what Sunmi was aiming for. Then a thought entered into his mind and before he could stop himself he was already asking the burning question. 

“Do you have a girlfriend?” The progression from their conversation to the question made logical sense to Chanyeol but not to Sunmi who looked really confused. 

Someone else who followed Chanyeol’s train of thought was Baekhyun who stifled a giggle in the crease of his elbow, enjoying the exchange going on behind him.

“Huh? Do I have a girlfriend? Why?”

Baekhyun dropped his remote and flopped next to Chanyeol on the sofa, curling up against his chest. This position was Baekhyun’s favourite. He claimed that Chanyeol was like a gigantic pillow and that he could sleep there instead of climbing into bed, easily. Chanyeol loved it too because from where he was sitting, he had the perfect view of Baekhyun’s contented face.

“Chanyeol has been working on a story,” Baekhyun explained, holding onto Chanyeol’s hand and massaging his palms. He knew that the sensation relaxed his boyfriend and did it all of the time. “It’s about mermaids. In his head, the mermaid is a lesbian.”

Sunmi looked even more perplexed by this explanation but answered the question anyway, “well, I do have a girlfriend, yeah. Her name is Jieun. I’m confused.”

“Do you have a photograph of her?” Baekhyun asked casually, happily taking the phone from Sunmi when she passed it over and showed the screen to Chanyeol. 

On the screen was a photograph of a young woman, shorter than Sunmi but no less beautiful. Sunmi was more fierce-looking in a leather jacket and skinny black jeans, but Jieun gave off much more serene energy. She was wearing a summer dress and gazing up at her girlfriend, her wide eyes filled with veneration for the woman hanging from her arm. Chanyeol easily committed the image to memory. 

“He wants to draw you,” Baekhyun said, having a skill for reading Chanyeol’s mind when words and questions failed him, “he has been imagining a story about a mermaid who comes to land and falls in love with a human girl,” he gazed up at Chanyeol as he retold the story, eyes sparkling as though it was the most beautiful story he had ever heard, “and I think your ideas reminded him of that.”

Pleasantly surprised, Sunmi asked Chanyeol, “you really want to draw us?”

Shy, Chanyeol nodded before burying his face in Baekhyun’s hair. It smelled like strawberries as it always did. The first time they had slept together, Baekhyun had used the sweet-smelling shampoo and Chanyeol had asked that he use it all the time. Now the smell of strawberries would forever remind him of Baekhyun. 

Kibum ruined the moment however by speaking up, no longer paying attention to the game.

“You knew all of that without even speaking to him?” Kibum asked, part disturbed and part amazed. 

Not bothered by Kibum’s slight judgment, Baekhyun just shrugged and kissed Chanyeol in comfort, knowing he was probably getting a bit overwhelmed after socialising for so long. 

“Sure, I do. I love him,” Baekhyun said so simply with such confidence and certainty that Chanyeol’s heart stuttered, “I make it my business to know everything about him. And he always does the same for me.”

If everyone went to bed early that night, no one mentioned it to Chanyeol. They stayed awake talking and watching TV until just after midnight but when Baekhyun sensed that Chanyeol was becoming restless, he suggested that everyone sleep so that they could go out for breakfast early. His quick thinking had saved Chanyeol from a few more hours of heightened anxiety and social exhaustion. And honestly, Baekhyun liked to climb into bed early, anyway because relaxing before sleeping made it more likely that he’d have enough energy the next day.

After saying goodnight to everyone, Baekhyun led Chanyeol by the hand and into his bedroom. 

“Peace at last,” Baekhyun declared, lightheartedly making fun of them both and their pedantry. 

The bedroom was Chanyeol’s favourite room in the house. Every inch just screamed Baekhyun; the walls were blue but it hardly mattered given that the room was plastered with design ideas, papers with random scribbles that came to Baekhyun in the night, and scraps of fabric tacked to the wall. The only wall that wasn’t a menagerie of art was the huge window that covered the entire outside wall. The view of Seoul was as breathtaking as ever but Chanyeol’s eyes were always drawn to the sketches and photographs. They were far more interesting to him than a view that didn’t tell him anything, that he couldn’t do anything within his mind. 

The room even smelled like Baekhyun; his shampoo and his perfume. Beside his bed rested a cast iron umbrella stand which was actually filled with canes of all kinds; pinks, purples, patterned, plain, glittery. There was a cane for every mood and every outfit. Next to it sat his wheelchair which was currently doubling up as a wardrobe. Baekhyun clearly hadn’t demanded that Taeyeon hang his washing up that week. Sometimes it was hard to believe what with how spritely Baekhyun could be, but hanging clothes in his wardrobe could often be an arduous task. Chanyeol made a mental note to do it for him in the morning when he wasn’t looking. 

They stripped down to their underwear, not bothering to wear pyjamas, and climbed into the large king-sized bed which was comically big when they only curled together in the middle of it anyway.

“Thank you for coming tonight,” Baekhyun whispered, resting his head on Chanyeol’s bear chest. “It meant a lot to me.”

Not really in the mood for talking after doing so for so long, Chanyeol merely hummed and ran his hands through Baekhyun’s hair. His locks were so silky. Chanyeol loved not only the feeling of the strands running between his fingers but also the feeling of Baekhyun’s hair on his bare chest. 

Baekhyun wrapped his arms around Chanyeol’s waist, sensing his boyfriend wasn’t up for talking and squeezed him as tightly as he could because that was what Chanyeol liked. 

“I started on a new idea this week,” Baekhyun spoke softly, not needing reassurance to know that Chanyeol wanted to hear him speak and that he was listening, “it’s a gender-neutral line. It’s only in the early stages but I wanted to focus on incorporating floral designs into it. And I thought, maybe, you could help me?” He ran his hand up and down Chanyeol’s arm, “you don’t have to answer me now but if you find me asking you too many questions about the differences between carnations and rhododendrons, you’ll know why.” 

He laughed to himself and looked at Chanyeol, studying his face. He seemed pleasantly surprised.

“You mean that? You want me to help you?”

Baekhyun nodded, his eyes sincere. 

Then he leaned up to kiss Chanyeol, deeply and with overflowing emotion. Chanyeol kissed him back, muscle memory taking over as he shut his eyes, already having memorised the map of Baekhyun’s lips and already being perfectly attuned to the way Baekhyun kissed and what made him tick.

A quick lick across Baekhyun’s bottom lip prompted him to open his mouth and as they allowed their tongues to meet, Baekhyun shifted awkwardly until he was straddling Chanyeol. 

After tapping Chanyeol to get his attention, Baekhyun gestured towards the band of Chanyeol’s boxers, asking permission to touch him. When Chanyeol assured him that it was fine, Baekhyun moved his hand past the elastic and began to softly palm Chanyeol, gradually building him up towards arousal. 

Chanyeol’s face contorted in pleasure as Baekhyun’s movements hastened and he stopped kissing, not able to focus on both things at once. Baekhyun didn’t mind. He just loved seeing Chanyeol looking so wound up and desperate and all because of Baekhyun. 

“Touch me, Yeollie,” Baekhyun begged, breathing hot air onto Chanyeol’s neck. He poked his tongue out and traced along his boyfriend’s neck, knowing he liked the way it tickled. When Chanyeol gasped from the combination of sensations running through his body, Baekhyun felt satisfied.

Finally getting a hold of himself, Chanyeol placed both of his hands on Baekhyun, one over his left nipple where Baekhyun was particularly sensitive and the other stroking his erection through his underwear. Chanyeol preferred to do it that way and Baekhyun didn’t mind. In fact, he loved it just fine if his quiet mewls were anything to go by.

A thought entered Chanyeol’s mind as he traced circles around Baekhyun’s nipple.

“Have you ever thought about getting a nipple piercing?”

The other man choked in surprise, his hand movements stopping briefly before he collected himself. When he spoke, his voice was strained due to his laboured breaths and his utter shock. “What!? I...ah fuck...no. What’s brought this on?!”   


“Well...unnnhh..Jongin said-”

Baekhyun covered Chanyeol’s mouth with his hand as quickly as he could manage, preventing him from speaking. 

“Oh my god,” he panted, both of them still moving their hands, Chanyeol admittedly a little startled, “if I fuck you do you promise you won’t talk about Jongin again?”

They both knew that Chanyeol’s brain wasn’t one for keeping promises but Baekyun was satisfied with Chanyeol’s shrug regardless. 

Baekhyun rolled them both over with great difficulty so that Chanyeol was lying on top of him and locked their lips together once again. 

They fell asleep that night, completely exhausted but overcome with love for one another. Their legs were tangled so much that Chanyeol wasn’t sure which legs were his, Baekhyun’s arms were tight around his middle as his head rose and fell in time with Chanyeol’s breathing, and Chanyeol held tightly onto his hand.

Before meeting Baekhyun, Chanyeol had wondered whether he would ever sleep with another man like this. Not because he thought there was anything wrong with wanting to love a man. In fact, loving this man was the best thing he thought he would ever do in his whole life. 

Mostly, he feared that no one would love him for him. Chanyeol knew that he experienced the world in a way that most people didn’t understand and that he saw things that other people were blind to. For his entire life, he worried that he would never meet another person who spoke his language. But then he met Baekhyun who understood Chanyeol as though it was the easiest thing in the world. 

Somehow, he knew what Chanyeol was thinking without him saying a word. He always knew when Chanyeol was unhappy or when he wanted to go home and curl up in bed. He was able to fill in Chanyeol’s silence but, equally, he loved to hear Chanyeol speak. 

Junmyeon said that this was because Baekhyun loved him.

“In a lot of ways,” Junmyeon said as he and Chanyeol walked home from a bar one night, hand in hand and admiring the stars in the night sky, “love is like a language. You have a love language and so does Baekhyun. Your language is loving tight hugs and having someone talk to you about the things you love. You need someone who is able to communicate without words, someone who knows that your silence doesn’t mean you don’t care. Baekhyun speaks your language. He knows all of these things already. That’s why you’re perfect for each other.”

These words resonated with Chanyeol who spent a great deal of time wondering what Baekhyun’s love language would be. 

He loved the fact that Chanyeol didn’t ask him awkward questions about his life, his history, his work or the things that Baekhyun struggled to talk about. Chanyeol would never even dream of it, which Baekhyun knew. Somehow, he knew straight away. Baekhyun loved someone who could laugh with him, find the fun in life when life was tough. He also loved people who understood his creativity and didn’t mind the way it took over him at times. 

Chanyeol definitely spoke Baekhyun’s language.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. I'm going to aim for 3 chapters a week for now but ofc I'd like them to be as best as they can be so it may take longer <3 my Twitter is @yeoloutof10 if you want to see when I next post! See you next time hehe


End file.
